At the hot pot restaurant, which claims to be the “Ferrari of hot pot restaurants,” customers are met with robot servers, dancing noodles, Szechuan hot pot, and seafood and vegetable-based dishes.
"It's a fun, bonding experience for families. It's authentic," said Heather Nguyen, development partner for NewQuest's Asia-Pacific Retail Group in a NewQuest Properties press release, "and the kind of restaurant you'd find on a trip to Asia."
Haidilao brought several of its staff from Cupertino, California, to launch its first restaurant in Texas, according to the release. The soft opening is reservations-only as the restaurant works to fill 90 staff positions needed to service the 200-seat establishment.
Each Haidilao location features a bar with desserts and appetizers as well as an array of hot pot ingredients and spices. During the soft opening period, Haidilao is open seven days a week for dinner.
With more than 600 corporate-owned locations worldwide, the China-based chain has built-in quality control on a universal level, the release said. Haidilao also has the distinction of being NewQuest's largest restaurant in Katy Grand, occupying a 6,295-square-foot end cap complemented by patio space.
"Haidilao is the best in class in quality and service. That's why we pursued them for Katy Grand," said Rebecca Le, senior vice president of the Houston-based brokerage and development firm, in the release.
Katy Grand, a 30-acre destination development, is located at the intersection of I-10 and the Grand Parkway. The development’s second phase is dedicated to attracting leading brands such as Haidilao and the Michelin-rated Tim Ho Wan to meet the historically high Asian demand in the marketplace, the release said.
